A Little Slice of Heaven
by NuclearPoweredStick
Summary: A young Star gives her mother a slightly unusual birthday wish. (One shot. Originally created for a 24 hour writing challenge with the theme of "food".)


"... and you're sure you don't want a cake?" Moon stared down at her young daughter in surprise, not entirely sure what to make of the unusual request.

"Yep!" The Princess stared back up at her mother with a wide smile.

"A birthday pie isn't exactly traditional." Though on reflection, Moon realized that very little about her daughter had turned out to be traditional so far. "And even if that's what you want, the royal baker could-

"Nope!" Star shook her head. Moon could tell she wasn't going to budge.

"... alright." Moon sighed, then smiled softly at Star. "You only turn six once. I suppose I can make some time for baking if I leave Stump Day planning to... your father." The Queen shuddered, remembering what happened last time she had allowed River to plan an important event. "Corn help us all."

"Oh yeah." Star tapped her chin curiously. "Maybe it would help Dad plan if he had some pie too?"

"Oh, I'm sure River won't mind sharing." Moon laughed quietly to herself. Her pies had always been popular among friends and family. With River's appetite, she wondered if she might be wise to bake a few extra, just in case. "That man only likes two kinds of pie. One crust pie, and two crust pie."

"Hey, those are my favorite too!" Star gave her mother a quick, enthusiastic bounce. "All your pies are super yummy, mom!"

"Well thank you, sweetie." It was actually somewhat rare for her daughter to give her such a direct compliment. She had been a rebellious handful almost since the day she was born. But Moon was sure that it was just a phase. She would grow out of it eventually. "What kind of pie do you want?"

"Psst. Star." Star suddenly heard a familiar voice whispering in her ear. "Just say pudding pie."

"Glossaryck!?" Star jumped away from the voice in surprise. "Geez, don't sneak up like that, weirdo! Why do you like pudding so much anyway?"

"Well..." Glossaryck scratched his beard, appearing deep in thought for a few seconds. "Let's just say pudding is one of the little things that's kept me from going crazy over the years."

"... has it?" Moon raised an eyebrow, regarding Glossaryck skeptically.

"You're never seen me going through pudding withdrawl, have you? You two should respect the power of pudding." Glossaryck pointed a single finger, first to Moon, then to Star. "Pudding might just save your life someday."

Star rolled her eyes, assuming Glossaryck was just being his usual weird self. "Pfft. Yeah, right."

Moon sighed with annoyance. Between the stresses of Stump Day and her daughter's birthday, she was in no mood to put up with Glossaryck's games. "Glossaryck... we were about to have a moment here."

"Technically, any given slice of time is a 'moment'..." Moon slowly narrowed her eyes at him. Glossaryck knew the look, and decided today wasn't the day to push his luck. "... buuuuuuuuuuut I take your point. I'll let you get back to it. Really looking forward to that pudding pie!" Glossaryck waved back to the two on the way out the door.

Star gazed on in confusion as Glossaryck floated out of the room, then looked back toward the Queen. "I... think I just want cherry."

"Of course, dear." Making a cherry pie was a simple enough job for Moon. As she thought about it, she thought it might be even simple enough for even someone Star's age to appreciate the experience. "Would you like to learn how?"

Star raised an eyebrow, curious as to what her mother meant. "You mean like, how to make pie?"

"Well, the basics, anyway. Your grandmother started teaching me when I was a few years older than you. She was a wonderful cook and baker, until she..." Moon coughed nervously, just managing to stop herself. "... went to live on the grandma farm."

"Oh, right..." As far as Star could remember, she had never met her grandma. She had sometimes wondered why. "We should surprise her with a visit soon!"

"Er... we'll talk about that sometime when it isn't your birthday." Moon thought that now was probably not the best time to address that sensitive topic. "Come on, let's started on your pie." Star began to follow her mother down toward the royal kitchen. "Now, the secret to a good pie is a good crust, so the first thing you do..."

On their way to the royal kitchen, Moon had stopped by her room to get her apron and a set of work clothes. Once they arrived she had gathered the necessary ingredients and walked her daughter through every step of making the perfect pie. To Moon's surprise, Star seemed quite interested in learning, even focused, at least by her standards.

Once the pie was out of the oven and had cooled enough, Moon returned with her daughter to put on the finishing touches.

"Now we're going to finish the presentation. The quality of the display is nearly as important as the quality of the food. So we're going to put a little bow on. Watch this. " Moon grabbed a piece of dough, beginning to roll it into a long string. As she worked she began humming a soft tune out of pure habit.

"What's that song?" Star's eyes went wide, not recognizing the music. It was unusual to see her mother so cheery. She immediately guessed that the song must have meant something special to her. "Is... is that from Grandma too?"

"Hm? Oh... yes." Moon hadn't even realized she had been humming. It had become so natural to her over the years when she was baking, reminding her of the carefree days of her childhood.. "It's been passed down between Queens for generations. This was the song she taught me when I was first learning how to tie the bow."

"Over, under, around and through,  
Grab the little Mewni rabbit, pull him through"

Even without magic, Moon's hands went through the motions almost automatically with a practiced grace, as Star watched her mother in amazement.

"Pinch it and fold it and tie it in a bow Like two little bunny ears made out of dough Over and under, wherever you roam Sweet little Mewni rabbit, hop back home"

As Moon placed the Butterfly shaped piece of dough on top of the pie, Star looked up at her mother with a sense of childish wonder. "Wow. I never knew that making pie had so much singing."

"It does the way I learned it. So remember this song." Moon knelt down above her daughter, reaching out to pat her gently on the head. "It might come in handy someday when you're baking a pie for someone special."

Star jumped up and wrapped her arms around the Queen, pulling her into a tight hug. "You're the best mom ever."

Moon pulled her daughter close, hugging her back, then pulling away to kiss her on the forehead. She gave Star a rare, genuine smile, the kind Star had only seen a handful of times, whispering just loud enough for the Princess to hear. "Happy birthday, Star."


End file.
